A/N: Hi guys. Well, I'm taking a Driver's Ed coarse currently and I just got back from watching The Video. I am just now getting over my new fear of cars, I know what a brain looks like on the pavement, I know what a head looks like without a brain, what it looks like when you've been scraped so badly you can see the bone, how drinking and driving is a very very very very bad thing, and I am neverrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr riding in a car without a seatbelt ever again. Needless to say I have a new respect for the road and am questioning the notion of getting my driver's license…

"HOW THE HECK COULD YOU GO OUT WITH MALFOY!!!???" She knew it was coming, it would come sometime, thankfully they waited until after Kioko put up the Silence Ward to yell at the top of their lungs.

Hotaru rubbed her ears and Kioko looked as though hers were currently ringing. She took her quick pen and started drawing 'baka' on their foreheads with Japanese characters. It was just so tempting, after all, Fred and George were right there. And the funniest thing is they weren't moving until they got an answer. Kioko was holding her stomach in laughter.

"Well?" Fred asked tapping his foot.

Hotaru took out a colored pen and started outlining the characters in blue ink. Kioko was now having a hard time breathing.

"We're not leaving until you answer." George told her. Hotaru got out a red pen and started outlining the blue smiling.

"She's writing 'idiot' on your face in Japanese in case you didn't know." Kioko said sucking in a lot of air from her laughing attacks. "Come on Hotaru, let's go on to Hogsmaede." Kioko said getting up from her bench. Hotaru put her book up and smoothed out her skirt before going around Fred and George to follow Kioko. But they started tailing the two.

"What the heck could you see in him?!" Demanded George.

"I mean, he's a git right?" Fred exclaimed.

"No, he just doesn't like you, so he's a git to you." Hotaru answered.

"But-but…!"

"Goodbye Fred, goodbye George." Kioko said waving.

********

"Anything new today Silver?" Kioko asked bending over a box of assorted rings.

"Yes, actually." Silver suddenly brought out a long sleek black dress and grinned at the two of them. "Dresses for two lovely ladies. You know the Yule Ball is coming up." He said.

"As pretty as that dress is I'm gonna have to decline. I don't plan on going to the dance with anyone. And besides," Kioko looked at the dress with a bit of disgust, "I don't like dresses period. Anything that doesn't close between the legs I have a bit of a problem with, unlike Hotaru."

Hotaru, on the other hand was feeling the fabric of the dress. It was sleek satin, very black and it shined a bit. It was mostly plain but it had a silver chain around the waist and gloves as well as a few jewelry items to accompany it. A silver necklace with violet gems, a chocker of the same nature, earrings that were in a long diamond shape made from the same violet gem, and two small silver chains to go on her wrists over the gloves. The top of the dress itself had two straps, one pare to go around the shoulders and one to hold it up and go over.

"Why don't you try it on Hotaru, looks like it'd fit you perfectly?" Kioko commented.

"There are dressing rooms over there. You can put it on while I try to talk Miss Night into a pant suit." Silver said. He folded up and handed the dress over to Hotaru and set the box with all its accessories to her as well.

"Pant suits I can do." Kioko said as Hotaru walked into the dressing room.

At first it didn't seem like there was a way for her to get the dress on, but it had obviously been spelled so that she could stretch it out and then slip it on. When it was on it seemed to tighten in certain areas to fit her form. She put on the gloves and the jewelry and when she looked in the mirror, she blushed. It was rather obvious she was 16 now, and it was only a while ago that her birthday had passed, she hadn't bothered to tell anyone because she got enough attention as it was. And her family hadn't said anything because they understood that. But she was 16, and looked it. Though she shouldn't have been surprised, all the senshi were prettier than average, it was because they were all princesses of the solar system. But, as Hotaru looked in the mirror, she couldn't help but think she looked…particularly pretty. She didn't know what it was, but the dress just seemed to bring out all her attractive features, including her unusually pale skin and black/violet hair.

"Come on out Hotaru," Kioko said from the door, "And don't give me the 'I'm not ready' excuse, I can tell you're second guessing the mirror!" she exclaimed.

Hotaru took a deep breath and opened the door. "Is it that bad?" She asked when Kioko just stood there and stared at her.

"Sorry, I just…I can't get this…okay I have this image of you and my head, exactly as you are now, and the caption is 'princess'. Now, I don't know about you, but I'd take offence to that kind of a thing, so that's why I'm having a hard time coming out with it." She told her.

"Oh…" Hotaru trailed off blushing.

"You look very lovely in it." Silver told her grinning. "Of course, being the store owner, I'd say that anyways so you can't quite take my word for it." He added making them snicker.

"Well, I think you should take it." Kioko said, an evil grin appeared on her lips, "I wanna see Malfoy's reaction." She snickered.

"Kioko!" Hotaru exclaimed.

"Kidding, kidding!" Kioko defended, "But really, you look good in it." She said honestly.

Hotaru sighed, "I suppose I'll take it." She said.

"Good, now change out real quick so I can try on this pant suit." Kioko pushed.

"Going, I'm going." Hotaru said walking back into the dressing room. She removed the dress and put her old clothes back on, folding it up as neatly as she could back into the box. When she came back out Kioko moved into the dressing room with a clothes box of her own.

*********

The next day was Monday, and it seemed news about the upcoming Yule Ball had reached the ears of a good number of students, who were in turn passing the info onto the rest of them. No one was sure exactly when it was, some guessed it'd be around the end of the school year, others suggested it was soon and were rushing to get dates. Whatever it was, both Kioko and Hotaru seemed to be getting a good many letters in their room from 'secret admirers' and 'non-so-secret admirers'. Kioko finally shut and locked the window, but decided against it after the owls decided to send them the letters in the meals. Mind you, it was only Monday.

On the arrival of Tuesday Hotaru had a good mind to change her pacifist ways just so she could help Kioko box a certain pare of twins' ears. At first she didn't feel so awkward when everyone was staring at her, there could have been some new discovery in the Daily Prophet, maybe the found out her father died near Christmas. She might have been able to live that down, but not why they were really staring.


She just happened to glance at the wall where the doors were, to see if Kioko was still coming, and she saw it. A very large sign that covered up all but the doorway was plastered right there, and there were several teachers on the sides of it trying to remove the thing. Hotaru, who was about to eat her biscuit, turned many shades of red and nearly dropped the thing back onto her plate.

"THE PRITIEST GIRLS IN ALL OF HOGWARTS ARE: HOTARU TOMO AND KIOKO NIGHT!!! (As if this fact wasn't painfully obvious before)" Was what it said. Hotaru hid her face in embarrassment. Why, oh why did they have to do that?!

Kioko came into the hall in a pleasant mood, she probably took a potion to get herself out of bed if she was in such a good mood, but once she sat down she noticed everyone was looking at them, and then noticed Hotaru with her face on the table pointing to the sign. "WEASLEY!!!!!" Kioko yelled in an ear-piercing shriek. She then pulled out her wand and sent a hex towards the sign.

Hotaru looked up to see what she'd done because the entire hall was starting to break out into a surrey of laughter, and then fell back down in her own fit of giggles. Kioko had changed the sign so instead of saying 'HOTARU TOMO AND KIOKO NIGHT' it said 'FRED AND GEORGE WEASLEY'. Hotaru suspected this was one of Kioko's spur-of-the-moment-ultimate-revenges because the entire school had seen it and the entire school would be laughing about it for a loooooooong time.

"Good one Night, even I have to admit that I'm impressed." Draco said as he moved into the seat beside Hotaru. Crabbe and Goyle were nowhere to be seen, but Hotaru knew better than to ask. Besides, she didn't want to know.

"Why thank you Draco." She said with a gesture of her hand. Hotaru noticed that the teachers were no longer trying to get the sign down.

But Kioko wasn't done yet, oh no. After classes were over she used a very complex sticky charm so that they stuck to everything their bare skin touched, meaning clothes, books, brooms, anything. And because it was so complex it took the rest of the day for them to figure out how to undo it for Setsuna was not going to help them.

"Well, I suppose we deserve it," George said good-naturedly. "Let's just be glad Hotaru isn't vindictive like Kioko or we'd really be in trouble." Hotaru fixed them with a slightly dark stare. Both Fed and George jumped and started running.

Kioko watched them for a moment, and she started snickering, "My glaring doesn't have as much of an impact anymore because I do it all the time, but since you hardly ever get mad at anything just a small look from you will scare them more than my regular glare." She said.

Hotaru shrugged.

*********

Journal Entry, Quidditch: Saturday's game was, a, nightmare. I mean, I don't really get in to Quidditch, but after that match I was feeling so sorry for the Gryffendor team. The only reason they won was because Ginny got the snitch, and it was still a close call. Kioko wasn't too happy about Ron's performance either. "After all that practicing with him!" she huffed after the match. I have to agree with her, Ron has been getting increasingly better when Kioko drags him out to the field and starts throwing Quaffles at his goals. But when on the field…

I had a nightmare again, and woke up in my hospital room Sunday morning, feeling as though something had been jerking me one way and then the other for a long time. I was rather dizzy and disoriented. The Symbol of Saturn was cut into my forehead much deeper than normal.

I can't really remember the nightmare, all I remember is the first part when I'm walking through the forest with all the huge trees and the glass road. Then the rest is a blur. Kioko told me that she was awakened by me screaming, crying out, and grabbing for something as I tossed and turned in my bed. She said it was like I was trying to move something, but in my dream I obviously couldn't. I seem to remember trying to gain back control.

I get the feeling that, if this was true, it means Mistress 9 is trying to raise again. I caught myself wandering down that same forbidden corridor, and had to hide quickly so as to keep Filtch from finding me there. It's a bit slow of me, but there has to be something down that corridor that Mistress 9 wants for some reason, I should tell Setsuna, I really should…but for some reason I get the feeling that this is best kept a secret. Maybe it's me, maybe it's Mistress 9, but something in my better judgment tells me to keep from telling anyone about that corridor.

If it's true what Malfoy told me in Rings, I've become a target of Voldemort, though I'm safe because he's not going to attack the castle with Dumbledore in it. But I'm only safe for a while. If he really wants Mistress 9 to be revived, and he doesn't stop until he gets what he wants…he could end up destroying the world.

It's a bit petty, but I still can't accept the fact that Mistress 9 is more powerful than Chaos, even though I said it myself to Malfoy. It's just really hard to accept that there are things we just don't know. We thought that Chaos and Cosmos were at the top of both ladders, but we were wrong it seems. And it's hard to accept that. Things have become a lot more complicated because of it. The way I look at cosmic balance is different now, I guess I'm starting to see it as a big mess where nothing has a simple explanation.

She's still trying to weigh me down, she's trying to overwhelm me. But, I made a promise, I absolutely refuse to let her win. She's not going to drag me down, she can try and try all she likes, but the only way I'll stop fighting is if she's able to kill me off for the body. She's trying to attack me in a physical sense now, by burning my forehead through my symbol. And it is really hurting nowadays, almost to the point where I can hardly concentrate on my homework. Setsuna's giving me some pain killers for it, but it's getting really tough.

It's starting to feel as though I just can't get a break from it all, there are no moments' peace for me. And when there are they are normally interrupted by one thing or another, mostly Haruka-papa. News has reached her ears that I went out with Malfoy. First she yelled at me for dating him behind her back, and then she went into a long repetitive lecture about how the Malfoys are all a bunch of bakas and gits. I'll not go into detail about what exactly she said, but it sounded like it was mostly based upon personal prejudices. I also noted that some things Lucius did I couldn't see Draco doing, at all. But there was no sense in trying to tell Haruka-papa that, my best bet was to sit there and listen to her until she averted her attention and then dart off in the nearest possible exit, which was a door leading to the library.

Umbridge has been starting to tail me a bit more as well. Asking little questions, some that I answer, some that I don't. No one's going to come to me with their problems if an adult is near so I haven't been too busy with all that. And the others a certainly not going to hang around me if she is, so it's been a while since I was able to ask Harry how he's doing. I've been hearing, from Kioko, that he's been having nightmares, and Occlumancy doesn't seem to be helping him much.

As for the Silent Language, Kioko and I have been using it with each other quite a bit, she's now able to read full pages of this book, though some words stump her at times. I've been getting better at tuning my mind-reading abilities more towards an 'on-off' switch, it's not nearly as bad now as it use to be. In fact Kioko's been helping me get use to it as well by doing what she had been the first time she found out, screaming her thoughts out and trying to make me read them.

However, emotions are another thing, I still get headaches when there's too much anger or hate in the room. Sometimes I just have to up and leave to get my head to stop pounding. It's very tiring.

I suppose I should get on to bed. Tomorrow promises to be a very tiring day because my teachers are giving me some really advanced homework now.

*********

By mid-morning the next day Hotaru good reason to be tired throughout the week. And it only started with Umbridge's 27th educational decree, "Any student found in possession of the magazine The Quibbler will be expelled." Well, this lead to questions, and this type of questions lead to answers, and this certain question lead to an answer that lead to an article in a Magazine.

Kioko was particularly happy that day, mainly because of Umbridge's reaction to Harry's article. She and Hermione both knew that if there was one thing Umbridge could have done to make people read that article it was banning it. Kioko ordered several of those magazines and put charms on them so that if Umbridge saw them they'd look like note books or blank sheets of paper. She then handed them out to anyone who didn't have one already.

Tuesday Galaxia could be seen with her hair up in a thick ponytail, red-tented glasses off, and a copy of The Quibbler in her hand for everyone to see, and it was very obvious what she was reading. Umbridge was not a happy woman.

But this was not the reason Hotaru was starting to get stressed, the reason was that she had handfuls of people asking her what she thought about it when she was needing some down time the most. But she was too polite to leave them hanging. So she let them know what she thought, and that was that Harry was telling the truth and 'He-Who-Is-A-Right-Pain-In-The-Rear' (ask Kioko called him) was back. Her only escape was her dormitory room, and it was hard to get there without being mobbed by Slytherins who wanted her opinion as well. She had to stay up really late Wednesday night to get all her homework done. And Thursday was not any help either, it seemed as though she'd take on Kioko's habit of sleeping in on weekends. But even then she was hardly getting a break. Mistress 9 was sending her nightmares left and right, she was taking a good many pain killers for her forehead, and it seemed as though depression was only adding to all the weight on her shoulders.

"I hope he goes off to Azcaban soon is all I can say." Malfoy muttered to her once.

"You're father?" Hotaru asked and he nodded.

"Potter named him as a Death Eater didn't he?" Draco grinned, "The sooner I get rid of him the better off I'll be. I almost want to thank Potter, almost." He added. "Though Crabbe and Goyle will have different plans so I suppose I ought to act like I despise him for it. What do you think?" he asked.

"Draco I've been having people ask me what I think for the entire week, for once I'd like to stop thinking." Hotaru sighed.

Draco rolled his eyes, "Just tell them to back off why don't you?"

"Because, they're asking me for my honest opinion and I can't just turn them down. You can, but not me." She answered rubbing her forehead.

After that it seemed Malfoy was a bit fed up with all the people asking her those questions. He made a point to butt in and start barking orders and threatening to give them detentions when they came in groups like they normally did. Hotaru didn't quite approve of his methods, but at the same time she was a bit thankful for the momentary peace this gave her. It was Draco's way of being sweet, well, as sweet as he could get at least. And he wasn't badgering her about telling him more about the Sailor Wars and all that in the least.

That weekend all Hotaru did for the day was sleep and pray her dreams were peaceful. And because they were there was no way on heaven and earth she was getting out of bed. Even though Kioko tried.

"Come on Hotaru, this just isn't right. You might cause the Apocalypse because of the wrongness of the picture. Me being wide awake and you laying here in bed trying to sleep is just not right!!!" Kioko wined. "Can you at least come to the library with me, you don't even have to read anything, just lay there on the table and doze." She said.

But Hotaru waved her off with her hand, "I couldn't get up if I wanted, and I don't." She mumbled tiredly. "I'm just too tired…" She yawned and turned over to get into a more comfortable position.

"Okay, okay, just promise you'll at least come to the library tomorrow." Kioko said.

"Hai, hai." She said and then dozed off again before she knew Kioko had left the room.

The next day she went down to the library with Kioko, but she couldn't focus on her book because she still wanted some sleep. She actually dozed off on the table with her book under her. Probably the only reason Madam Pince didn't wake her was because she was asleep on her own book and not one of the library ones.

"Hey Hotaru," Kioko said in one of Hotaru's dozing intervals. "I still have that Draught of Peace, want some? It'll probably help you sleep better." She asked handing her the magic bottle. Hotaru took it and sipped a bit of it. By the time she had handed it back she was asleep again.

Monday, however, was an entirely other matter. She woke up bright and early with a relaxing yawn, feeling very refreshed and ready to tackle an entire week of stress, though prepared to borrow some Draught of Peace to do it with. She walked to the Great Hall in a very pleasant mood and sat down in her normal spot. She was finished with her breakfast before most even started so she walked over to the Gryffindor table to visit with Harry a bit.

"Hi Harry! Hi Ron! Hi Hermione! How are you today?" She asked.

"You're sure in a nice mood. Something good happen?" Ron asked with a peace of bacon in his mouth.

Hotaru shook her head, "No, I just feel so much better today. I spent the entire weekend sleeping and now I'm refreshed. Though I'm hoping to keep my grades up, I get the feeling that I was slipping a bit last week because of all the stress." She said.

"Don't feel bad if you let them slip, I heard the teachers are starting to give you N.E.W.T. level homework." Hermione said smiling. "I honestly don't know how you do it, last time I tried loading myself up I couldn't hardly handle it."

Ron stared at Hotaru, "N.E.W.T. level?! How the heck are you managing!?" He demanded awestruck.

"Quick pens help a good deal, especially after you've used them for a while. And after a good deal of reading you learn how to take in an entire page within a minute." Hotaru answered.

"Brains help as well." Hermione put in, "And you get better brains with practice." She gave the two of them a 'look'.

"Well, I suppose I'll see you in classes." Hotaru said.

"Wait, Hotaru. There's something I have to ask you." Harry said grabbing her robes.

"Yes?" Hotaru asked, she should have known what was coming up next.

"Is it, is it true that you went out with…Malfoy?" He asked, hardly able to say it.

"Yes, Harry, I did. And I can tell exactly what you're about to say without reading your mind so don't waste your energy. And here's my answer: No, I don't think he's a git. But what I do think is that you two would become pretty good friends if you put your differences aside." She answered, firmly enough, but keeping her soft edge.

"As if." Harry snorted.

"You know, that's exactly what he said when I suggested it to him. I'll see you later." She told him before leaving to join back up with Kioko.

The day probably started out a good day, in fact it seemed as though it'd stay a good day for a long while, but everything went downhill the instant their Occlumancy session started.

"Today I'd like you to try letting me into a few of your memories, if you see one coming you particularly don't want to share you can resist, but I'd like to see if I can gain any clues." Snape told Hotaru.

She was a little surprised at first, normally he wanted her to be able to keep him from seeing anything, and she had. But now as she stood in front of him, she had to try not to clear her mind because it had become second nature when in this position. "Legilimens!" Snape exclaimed with his wand to Hotaru.

She was 7 and Kelorinite wes looking down at her in disgust. She was 8 and sitting on a chair Kelorinite had strapped her too and was refusing to drink any milk the woman tried getting down her. She was 4 and at work with her Papa, the room suddenly exploded. She was 11, and starring at a part of her arm she had skinned, discovering for the first time the cyborg part of her. She was 14, she bent down to pick up a hat that a cute pink haired girl lost and breathing heavily from exhaustion. Still 14, and there was Chibi-Usa handing her an ice cream cone. Chibi-Usa was running to her, big smile on her face, Hotaru'd never felt so happy in her life.

There was her Papa, standing there before her. She reached out and…

"NOOOO!!!" Hotaru shrieked, forcing the images back, forcing the memories back. She didn't want to remember that, it was the last thing she wanted to remember! She collapsed onto the ground and started sobbing, crying. It was her fault! She'd tried to forget, tried so hard to forget, but it was her fault, she just didn't want to be alone…

"Hotaru!" Harry gasped and he was at her side before she knew it. Hotaru grabbed the sleeve of his robes and buried her face in them, just sobbing.

"It's all my fault!" She cried out.

"H-Hotaru, we-we need to get Setsuna, or Madam Pomphry, someone. I think, you, you released some sort of force, and Snape is…" Harry trailed off.

Hotaru bolted upright and ran over to Professor Snape's limp form. "Oh no!!!" She yelled. "Oh please don't be dead! Please don't be dead!!!" She cried out hysterically, trying to check for pulse. She grabbed his hand into hers and just cried, she couldn't find a pulse, nothing. With all her might she wished and wished, she willed him to still be alive. She pushed her wish all through her body, ever inch of her was wishing, praying, hoping he wasn't dead.

"I'm sorry!!!" She cried desperately, "Don't die, don't…" Hotaru gasped. Her hands were glowing with a violet light and coursing with power. They shook and trembled because of the new force, but it seemed they knew what to do. The violet glow passed from her hands and extended on down Snape's arm and then throughout his body. She…she could feel his pulse now, he stirred, his chest went up and down as he breathed, and his eyes fluttered open.

It was another moment before the violet light left, and Hotaru felt so drained of all her emotional and physical energy she could hardly keep herself sitting up on the floor. Snape sat up and stared at her, a blank look in his eye that was gradually turning to disbelief. "Tomo," He whispered, "I was dead…"